Through its in-house design consultancy, Wentworth House Partnership, Keltbray has been testing and proving the applications of Wagners EFC, alongside other eco-friendly concretes, across a diverse range of project types. The success of this initiative in achieving proof of concept has now led to the decision to make EFC a core service offering on its customers' temporary works projects.
EFC has all the performance characteristics of Portland cement-based traditional concrete but uses a geopolymer binder system made from the chemical activation of two industrial waste by-products - blast furnace slag (waste from iron production) and fly ash (waste from coal-fired power generation). This alternative eco-friendly binder technology reduces the carbon emissions associated with normal Portland cement and has a much lower embodied energy.
Importantly, the engineering and construction properties of this environmentally friendly concrete are as good, and in some areas better, than normal concrete. Significant performance advantages include improved durability, lower shrinkage, earlier strength gain, higher flexural tensile strength and increased fire resistance.
"By offering EFC to all our customers, we believe this is an industry-first initiative in the wide-spread application of carbon-reduced concrete on major temporary works packages," said Tim Lohmann, director of Keltbray's specialist design consultancy, Wentworth House Partnership.
"As a true industry innovator, we are leading the way in supporting EFC becoming a ‘go-to' construction product in the future for customers demanding more sustainable delivery. Together, materials and construction processes account for 11 per cent of all carbon emissions globally. To decarbonise the sector, we must eliminate both operational and embodied carbon emissions.
"That is why we are funding investigations into how we unlock the wider potential of this material for our customers, who will benefit from the reduction in the embedded carbon in their buildings and infrastructure. It is only by stimulating customer demand in this way that we will realise the benefits of the widespread adoption and use of this innovative, sustainable construction resource."
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